Lloyd Pennington Obituary (from the Medford Mail Tribune)Lloyd Pennington, resident of Ashland for over sixty years, passed away March 6 in Ashland. Dr. Pennington was born in Portland, Oregon, on April 4, 1917. He attended Reed College for his undergraduate degree where he majored in chemistry. While at Reed he met Hazel, his future wife, on one of many outdoor adventures with the Reed Hiking Club. They graduated from Reed in 1939 and were married in 1942. Lloyd went on to earn his Ph. D. at Oregon State University in 1955.
Lloyd and Hazel moved to Ashland in 1946 when Lloyd was hired to teach chemistry at Southern Oregon College of Education. When he arrived he found limited equipment and facilities. He began what was to be a career of developing a first-class chemistry department. Over the next thirty years he recruited and led a chemistry faculty that together built a regionally recognized program, which sends chemistry majors on to medical schools, graduate programs, and industry. Lloyd remained the chairman of the department until h took over as head of the science division, a position that he held until his own retirement in 1979. Lloyd designed and supervised the building of the two science building in 1959 and 1968, doing much of the initial design work and then working closely with the architects and builders to make the space safe and suitable for the special research and teaching needs of the various science departments.
In addition to building the chemistry department, Lloyd built a house on upper Walker Avenue on a very large lot. There Lloyd and Hazel landscaped a park-like expanse of lawns, vegetable and flower gardens, stream, outdoor kitchen and ball court that became the center for family and chemistry department social events for many years. In his elusive spare time, Lloyd developed a serious interest in color photography and developed a well equipped darkroom. As the Pennington children grew up and left home, Lloyd and Hazel began to travel extensively, especially to Europe. After several tours with friends and family, Lloyd and Hazel developed a special fondness for the landscapes, cuisines, and wines of Italy. Their homes have been well decorated with gorgeous photos that Lloyd composed and shot with the eye of an artist, then developed and framed with the meticulous hand of an analytical chemist. Lloyd enjoyed and passed on to his children a fondness for outdoor living, hiking, camping, travel, gardening, woodworking, and photography.
Lloyd and Hazel were active in the First Presbyterian Church of Ashland. They were member for over fifty years, and both served as elders. Lloyd was preceded in death by Hazel and is survived by four children, eleven grandchildren, and five great grandchildren. Memorial services were held at the Ashland First Presbyterian Church on Saturday, March 20. Donation can be sent to the Southern Oregon University Foundation, 1250 Siskiyou Boulevard, marked for the Lloyd and Hazel Pennington Memorial Chemistry Scholarship.
